Should you watch this at weekday movie ticket prices? No.
Should you watch this for free? If you liked the book and want to see how it was adapted.
Secret ending? No.
Running time: 112 minutes (~1.75 hours)
“The 5th Wave” is a science fiction, young adult movie based on the novel of the same name. A group of teenagers discover the horrifying truth behind an alien invasion, and must band together to survive on a decimated planet. It stars Chloë Grace Moretz (Cassie Sullivan), Nick Robinson (Ben Parish), Ron Livingston (Oliver Sullivan), Maggie Siff (Lisa Sullivan), Alex Roe (Evan Walker), Maria Bellow (Sergeant Reznik), Maika Monroe (Ringer), and Liev Schreiber (Colonel Vosch). It is rated PG-13.
Right from the start, “The 5th Wave” tries to impress with a gritty teenage protagonist that turns out to be much less impressive than her initial showing. It gives the sense that it’s trying to pander to what it thinks you’d like to see, rather than focusing on a proper story. And that’s a pity, because a group of teenagers fighting off an alien invasion is actually a pretty interesting concept, and that’s what you’re really there to watch. Instead, all you get is a regular teen movie that’s just dressed up in a different set of circumstances.
Highlights
Easy to understand
The movie not only provides verbal explanations for what’s happening, but also takes pains to depict all the exposition visually as well. This means that it doesn’t trip up on convoluted explanations for the science involved, and whatever is left unexplained is explicitly called out (and used as a teaser for future films).
Letdowns
No sense of stakes or scope
The problem with the alien invasion is that it’s supposed to have taken place globally, but there’s no sense of that beyond some disaster scenes in big cities. The whole film takes place in a small town and its nearby forest, confining the scale of the film to perhaps one million affected people, at most. It’s not epic enough for a worldwide catastrophe, and as a result you’re not too worried if the heroes fail. There’s the rest of the (unseen) world to handle this crisis, after all.
Melodramatic developments
It’s bad enough that the plot is paper thin — you can see twists and developments coming a mile away. The problem is exacerbated by the fact that the film over dramatises everything that happens, to the point that it’s hilariously over the top. What is meant to be a quiet moment of connection between two characters becomes intense, lovelorn stares that’s dripping with unresolved tension while cheesy music plays in the background. Subtlety is not a trait of this film.
Sack of stereotypes
Everything in this film is a cliche, from the hackneyed lines to the tiresome relationships. Nicely put, they’re all derivative of other movies, but there’s no new spin on these elements. There’s nothing that makes “The 5th Wave” distinct from any other teen movie or alien invasion film, giving you a sense that you’ve seen it all before (except it’s been done better).
Exaggerated explosions
The special effects crew put in a lot of work into their explosions, yes. But when props explode into gigantic spheres of flame that are 10 to 20 times their original size, or a small explosion results in tremendous structural damage, you can’t take any of the pyrotechnics seriously. There’s no sense of consistency between explosions, and none of it makes sense on screen.
“The 5th Wave” fails to be original, even though its premise is rather interesting. It tries too hard to ride on the wave of teen movies that are out, without capitalising on the unique aspects which would have made it successful.
“The 5th Wave” comes out in cinemas 14 January, 2016 (Thursday).
Leave a Reply